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Remember ‘why’ start to ‘do’ and celebrate your ‘wins’

20/01/2017

Do you remember your first day working in your own business? You had big dreams; your heart was full of ambition, fuelled by excitement and was perhaps accompanied by a little bit of trepidation. It would have been a great day, and the lead up to it (months or years of planning, thinking and preparation) probably fired up a new lease of life and purpose for you. Big thinking and focusing on passionate endeavours tend to generate feelings of fulfilment.

As time goes on, however, it is all too common to get tied down to the routine of it all and lose touch with the reason that you, as a business owner, took the leap of ‘going it alone’. Well here is a chance for you to remember!

I love making a difference… Do you?

For me, when I took over the business from my father, I decided that I wanted to do more than traditional accountancy. To be frank, I was tired of the old-fashion practices and the focus on ticking boxes, keeping legal and taking work life far too seriously. The more I got under the skin of my customer’s businesses and understood the very real day-to-day issues that they faced the more I started to believe I could offer a bit more. Then, as I watched the world of technology develop increasingly clever solutions to shake up the accountancy world, I found my passion for the work at hand increase. I suppose I found my forte within ‘making a difference’.

My encouragement to you today is to go and do the same. It may be that, like me, your route into running your own business was not as a startup or a long-held ambition. Perhaps you too inherited, were forced into the business by circumstance or simply decided to give it a go to keep busy. Whatever brought you to the position you are in today, I know one thing for sure – if you don’t love it you’ll soon come to hate it!

Do what you love, do it well and enjoy the reward!

For me, one of the best feelings is seeing the result of doing more than an average accountant could. One example was when we took on a new client who had already sunk far below the dreams and ambitions he had started out with. He was in way too deep, and it is probably more accurate to say that he was close to drowning.

He was under so much pressure from the bank that he’d just put all of his personal assets on the line – so you can imagine how worried he and his family were becoming. The first thing we did was to set up regular monthly meetings, and I began to act as his company’s finance director, producing real-time management information. It was an interesting case because on the face of it the business model seemed solid enough. So I set about analysing everything and drilling into the detail to understand why it wasn’t working.

All of the hands-on meetings and close personal involvement meant I could investigate and implement the changes that were needed very quickly. Being involved as part of the management team also helped my to fully engage with the business in the same way that I would do my own. As the issues slowly came to light, I was delighted to demonstrate that, as I had first thought, the model was basically sound, it was just a matter of identifying and correcting some errors. So it wasn’t long before I could reassure my client that his family’s assets were safe again and the cash flow in the business was now a positive number.

Many years have passed since we started working together and I am currently helping to facilitate the sale of that same business for an eight-figure sum… How’s that for making a difference?

When you win – celebrate, share your success, and remember why you started!

Examples like the one mentioned above are part of the reason that Meades & Co were recently invited to be included in AVN’s new book “The Business Owner’s Guide to the UK’s Best Accountancy Practices.” It is great to be recognised for doing the things that you love and doing them well.

Play the video to learn more

Whether you are drowning in debt, growing out of control or have forgotten the joyful ambition that started you on your entrepreneurial journey, maybe we can help.

Get in touch and let’s book a face-to-face meeting! Maybe together we can make a real difference for your business too?